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An affidavit is a formal, written statement of facts that is voluntarily made by a person (the affiant) under an oath or affirmation. It is considered a legal document that carries the same weight as testifying in a court of law.
Because an affidavit is signed under the penalty of perjury, the information contained within it must be true and based on the affiant's personal knowledge.
A properly drafted affidavit typically contains several key elements to ensure its validity in a legal or professional setting:
For an affidavit to be legally binding, it must be notarized. As a Notary, your role in this process is critical:
An affidavit is not an affidavit without a jurat. If a signer brings you a statement without a jurat and asks you to "notarize it," you must ask them if they need to swear an oath. You cannot choose the type of notarization for them, as that would be considered the unauthorized practice of law.
Affidavits are used across many industries. Some of the most common include:
Perjury: Because an affidavit is signed under oath, providing false information in one can lead to criminal charges for perjury.
Personal Knowledge: An affiant should only include facts they personally know to be true. They should avoid including "hearsay" (information they heard from someone else) unless specifically required by a certain legal procedure.
An Affidavit of Records (often referred to as an Affidavit of Custodian of Records) is a legal document used to authenticate business or medical records so they can be admitted as evidence in a legal proceeding.
Essentially, it is a sworn statement by the person in charge of a company's files (the "Custodian") confirming that the records provided are true, accurate, and were created as part of the normal operations of that business.
In a court of law, documents are generally considered "hearsay" and cannot be used as evidence unless a witness testifies that they are authentic.
The Affidavit of Records acts as a Hearsay Exception (specifically the "Business Records Exception"). It allows a business to submit thousands of pages of evidence—like bank statements, medical charts, or invoices—without requiring the person who wrote them to physically show up in court.
For an Affidavit of Records to be legally effective, the Custodian must typically swear to three specific things:
As a Notary, you will frequently encounter these when working with law firms, hospitals, or banks. Your responsibilities include:
Authentication vs. Accuracy: The Affidavit of Records only proves that the records are authentic (the real documents from that business). It does not necessarily prove that the information inside the documents is 100% accurate—it only proves that these are the official files the company relies on.
If you are doing a Remote Online Notarization (RON) for one of these, ensure the Custodian has the digital versions of the records ready to be "attached" or identified within the electronic document, as the affidavit usually refers to the records as "Exhibit A" or "attached hereto."
A Warranty Deed is a legal document used in real estate to transfer ownership of real property from a seller (the grantor) to a buyer (the grantee).
Unlike other types of deeds, a warranty deed provides the highest level of protection to the buyer because it includes "covenants of title"—legally binding promises that the grantor truly owns the property and has the right to sell it.
There are two primary versions of this document, and the difference lies in how far back the protection goes.
This is the "gold standard" of deeds. It provides a full guarantee that the title is clear, not just during the time the seller owned it, but throughout the entire history of the property. If a hidden lien or owner from 50 years ago suddenly appears, the seller is legally responsible for fixing it.
This version is more common in commercial real estate or foreclosure sales. The seller only warrants that the title was clear during their period of ownership. They make no promises about what happened before they bought the property.
When a General Warranty Deed is signed, the grantor is making six specific legal promises:
It is important to understand how these differ, as you will likely see both in your Notary work:
| Feature | Warranty Deed | Quitclaim Deed |
|---|---|---|
| Protection | Highest Protection | No Protection |
| Guarantees | Promises title is clear. | Only transfers "whatever interest" I have. |
| Best For | Traditional home sales. | Family transfers, divorces, or fixing typos. |
| Liability | Seller is liable for title defects. | Seller has zero liability. |
Real estate deeds must be notarized to be recorded in the public land records. Without your seal, the transfer of ownership is essentially "invisible" to the county.
Recording the Deed: A warranty deed is not fully "official" until it is recorded with the County Clerk or Recorder of Deeds. As a Notary, you should remind your clients that they (or their title company) need to file the document immediately after notarization to protect their legal priority.
If you notice a Warranty Deed where the "Grantee" (buyer) name is blank, do not notarize it. This is known as a "deed in blank" and is illegal or invalid in most jurisdictions.
A Closing Disclosure (CD) is a five-page document that provides final details about the mortgage loan you have selected. It includes the loan terms, your projected monthly payments, and how much you will pay in fees and other costs to get your mortgage (closing costs).
Lenders are required by law to provide this to borrowers at least three business days before they sign their loan documents. This is known as the TRID rule (TILA-RESPA Integrated Disclosure), designed to give borrowers time to compare the final terms with the initial Loan Estimate they received.
This is the "big picture" page. It answers the most common questions:
This page is a deep dive into every penny being spent.
This page compares the final numbers to the original Loan Estimate.
This page covers the "fine print" of your loan agreement:
The final summary page:
As a Notary or Signing Agent, the Closing Disclosure is often the first document in the stack.
The Cash to Close on Page 1 is the single most important number for the borrower to verify. If they have already wired funds, ensure the amount they wired matches (or exceeds) this number.
If you are doing a Remote Online Notarization (RON), the borrower will usually "e-sign" the CD before the video session or as the first document during the session. Make sure they have a clear digital copy for their records, as this is their final receipt for the entire transaction.
In the world of notarization, the two most common certificates you will encounter are the Acknowledgment and the Jurat. The fundamental difference lies in whether the signer is merely "acknowledging" their signature or "swearing to the truth" of the document.
An Acknowledgment is used to ensure that the signer of a document is who they claim to be and that they have signed the document voluntarily.
A woman brings you a Power of Attorney document. She signed it at home yesterday. You verify her ID and ask: "Did you sign this document of your own free will for the purposes stated inside?" She says yes. You then complete the Acknowledgment certificate.
A Jurat (sometimes called a "Verification upon Oath or Affirmation") is used when the signer is swearing that the contents of the document are true.
A man needs to prove he lives in a certain school district. He brings an Affidavit. You verify his ID, then have him stand and raise his right hand. You ask: "Do you solemnly swear that the information in this affidavit is true and correct to the best of your knowledge?" He says, "I do," and then signs the document while you watch. You then complete the Jurat.
| Feature | Acknowledgment | Jurat |
|---|---|---|
| Purpose | To confirm identity and intent. | To confirm truthfulness of the content. |
| Oath Required? | No. | Yes, always. |
| Signed in Presence? | No (can be signed previously). | Yes (mandatory). |
| Common Documents | Deeds, Contracts, Powers of Attorney. | Affidavits, Depositions, Court Papers. |
| Key Verbiage | "...acknowledged to me..." | "...subscribed and sworn to..." |
State of Texas
County of Tarrant
This instrument was acknowledged before me on February 3, 2026, by John Doe.
State of Texas
County of Tarrant
Subscribed and sworn to (or affirmed) before me on February 3, 2026, by John Doe.
Signer Choice: As a Notary, you cannot choose which certificate to use for a customer. Doing so is considered the "Unauthorized Practice of Law" (UPL). If the document doesn't have a certificate attached, you must ask the customer: "Do you need to acknowledge your signature, or do you need to swear an oath to the truth of the document?"
For Remote Online Notarization (RON), the same rules apply. For a Jurat, you must see them digitally sign the document during the live video feed. For an Acknowledgment, they can have pre-signed it, but they must "virtually" acknowledge the signature during the recorded session.
Reference guide for common notary documents in plain English.
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